Santa Margarita’s Murray Shows It Runs in the Family

Those hand-me-down shoes seemed about five sizes too large when Steven Murray began running cross-country at Santa Margarita four years ago. Some thought he would never fit into them.

But Murray filled them nicely at the Southern Section cross-country finals Saturday at Mt. San Antonio College, winning the Division II individual title and joining his brother, Michael, as the only Santa Margarita runners to accomplish that feat.

“I’ve dreamed of this since my brother did it in high school,” Murray said. “I never could understand what type of feeling this might be.”

Murray completed the 2.93-mile course in 15 minutes 5.9 seconds, taking the lead just after the two-mile mark and finishing 10 seconds ahead of Canyon Country Canyon’s Luke Llamas.

It was the top time among county runners and smashed his brother’s personal best on the course by 20 seconds. Michael Murray, a senior at Mt. Saint Mary’s College in Maryland, won a Division III-AA title as a sophomore in 1994 and a Division II-A title in 1995.

“He ran the race exactly how we talked about,” said Santa Margarita Coach Dave Zeitler. “He sat for two miles and then put it down.”

Murray didn’t get caught up in a blistering opening mile, opting to sit back in fourth heading up the switchbacks. He moved into third coming back down, then jostled for position with Llamas heading up Poop-Out Hill.

“I could tell the way the Canyon kid was running at the top of Poop-Out, he didn’t want me to pass him,” Murray said. “I’d move over a tiny bit and he’d totally get right in front of me.”

Murray found an opening just before the two-mile mark, moved alongside Llamas and then made his separation heading toward Reservoir Hill.

“I saw him drop back a little bit and I knew it was my time to push it,” Murray said.

Murray’s victory didn’t help his team’s cause, however. The Eagles, who returned every member of a team that finished ninth at last season’s Division II state finals, did not advance after finishing 12th out of 13 teams. Murray will run Saturday at the state finals in Fresno as an individual.

No county boys’ teams from Division II finished in the top four and earned automatic qualifying berths, but Valencia, Sonora and Newport Harbor will be considered for at-large berths after finishing below the qualifying team time. Coaches will be informed this morning whether they have been accepted.

Estancia won’t need to sit by the phone. The Eagles had the best finish among county boys’ teams, taking second in Division IV and advancing to state for the third consecutive season. Sophomore Humberto Rojas paced the Eagles with a sixth-place finish in 15:43.3.

Corona del Mar’s Travis Beardslee finished second in Division IV in 15:17.6, the second-fastest time among county boys. Josh Yelsey, another Corona del Mar senior, finished seventh in 15:50.8 and also qualified for state.

Tyler Kastorff of Dana Hills had the third-fastest time among county runners, finishing seventh in the Division I race in 15:21.0, the third-fastest time ever on the course by a sophomore. Kastorff’s finish helped the Dolphins finish third and earn an automatic berth.

El Toro took the fourth and final automatic qualifying spot in Division I, paced by a strong push from its fifth runner, Jon Mendoza, an alternate at the prelims last week. Mendoza’s points helped the Chargers edge defending state champion Chino Don Lugo by two points.

Santa Ana, Edison, Santa Ana Valley and Fountain Valley were among nine teams that will be considered for at-large berths in Division I, but it’s likely only Santa Ana and Edison will be accepted based on the number of at-large berths available.

Pacifica’s Steve Naughton finished third in Division III in 15:38.2 and also qualified as an individual.